The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Jun. 14, 2011
Filed:
Feb. 09, 2006
Durward I. Faries, Jr., Las Vegas, NV (US);
Bruce R. Heymann, Vienna, VA (US);
Calvin Blankenship, Frostburg, MD (US);
David Hendrix, Ashburn, VA (US);
Durward I. Faries, Jr., Las Vegas, NV (US);
Bruce R. Heymann, Vienna, VA (US);
Calvin Blankenship, Frostburg, MD (US);
David Hendrix, Ashburn, VA (US);
Other;
Abstract
A drape including a sensing device according to the present invention is disposed over a top surface of a thermal treatment system having a basin recessed therein. A portion of the drape is pushed down into the basin to form a drape container for collecting a sterile medium. The thermal treatment system may be of the type that either heats or congeals the sterile medium. The sensing device includes electrodes that are typically disposed through the drape and sealed. The electrodes provide signals indicating the presence of liquid and/or leaks or other conditions within the drape container to the system to facilitate control of system operation. In addition, the sensing device includes a fuse to limit the drape to a single use. The system disables the fuse to indicate prior use and detects tampering to bypass the fuse, thereby preventing use of the drape for subsequent medical procedures.